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Flows of raw materials and

food safety of products of

Slovenian manufacturers

after EU entry

Romana TOMŠE

1*

, Vesna ČANČER

2

, Peter RASPOR

3

ABSTRACT

In food production, the choice of suppliers and raw materials is very important and plays a key role in providing quality, appropriate healthy food. Selection of new suppliers and the planned verification of existing suppliers is also the key point in the HACCP system (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point, which means the risk analysis and critical control points). The aim of our survey was to analyse the level of food safety in Slovenia before and after Slovenia joined the EU. The aim of our survey was to determine whether joining the EU had an impact on choice of food suppliers and control of the raw materials used in production of foods. The common thread of research was a comparison of answers, for periods before and after Slovenia joined the EU, gained from the survey of the Slovenian food producers.

The study has shown that after joining the EU there were some replacements of suppliers, as well as changes in control of suppliers, but the changes were smaller than expected. The analysis of the responses from the survey shows that the Slovenian manufacturers mostly trust domestic suppliers of raw materials. After Slovenia’s accession to the EU, the use of raw materials from other EU countries, as well as the control over suppliers, has increased. After Slovenia’s accession to the EU, the percentage of those Slovenian producers who control Slovenian supplier under looser criteria, has slightly increased, while the percentage of those Slovenian producers who control EU supplier under looser criteria has significantly increased. The survey results show partial distrust of free movement of goods. Producers on average partly agree that they equally trust the manufacturers in all EU member states.

Key words: foods, food producers, comparison before and after EU entry,

control of foods, survey of food producers. Received: 8. 5. 2012.

Accepted: 26. 5. 2012.

1 University of Nova Gorica

Graduate studies of Environmental Sciences Vipavska 13, Rožna Dolina

SI-5000 Nova Gorica, Slovenia

2 University of Maribor

Faculty of Economics and Business Razlagova 14

SI-2000 Maribor, Slovenia

3 University of Ljubljana

Biotechnical Faculty

Department of Food Science and Technology

Jamnikarjeva 101 SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia

* Corresponding author

Romana Tomše

University of Nova Gorica

Graduate studies of Environmental Sciences Vipavska 13, Rožna Dolina

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POVZETEK

V proizvodnji živil je izbira dobaviteljev in s tem samih surovin zelo pomembna in ima ključno vlogo pri zagotavljanju kvalitetne, zdravstveno ustrezne hrane. Izbira novih dobaviteljev in načrtovano preverjanje že obstoječih dobaviteljev sta ključni točki tudi v HACCP sistemu (angleška kratica Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point, kar pomeni analiza tveganja in določanje kritičnih kontrolnih točk). Namen naše raziskave je bil analizirati izbiro dobaviteljev in nadzor nad surovinami slovenskih proizvajalcev pred in po vstopu Slovenije v EU. Cilj raziskave je bil ugotoviti, ali je vstop Slovenije v EU vplival na izbiro dobaviteljev in nadzor nad surovinami, ki se uporabljajo v proizvodnji živil. Rdeča nit raziskave je bila primerjava odgovorov, pridobljenih z anketiranjem slovenskih proizvajalcev hrane, za obdobje pred in po vstopu Slovenije v EU. Raziskava je pokazala, da je po vstopu v EU prišlo do zamenjave nekaterih dobaviteljev, kakor tudi do sprememb pri samem nadzoru dobaviteljev, vendar so bile spremembe manjše, kot smo pričakovali. Analiza odgovorov iz raziskave je pokazala, da slovenski proizvajalci najbolj zaupajo domačim dobaviteljem in surovinam. Po vstopu Slovenije v EU se je povečala uporaba surovin iz drugih držav EU, prav tako tudi nadzor nad dobavitelji. Po vstopu se je nekoliko povečal odstotek tistih slovenskih proizvajalcev, ki obvladujejo slovenske dobavitelja po ohlapnejših kriterijih in ter tistih slovenskih proizvajalcev, ki nadzorujejo EU dobavitelja po ohlapnejših kriterijih. Rezultati ankete prikazujejo delno nezaupanje v prosti pretok blaga. Proizvajalci se v povprečju delno strinjajo, da enako zaupajo proizvajalcem v vseh državah članicah EU.

Ključne besede: živila, proizvajalci živil, primerjava pred in po vstopu v EU,

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INTRODUCTION

Issues of flows of raw materials and foodstuffs and their safety repre-sent a challenge for each country, which is in accordance with the Reg-ulation (EC) No. 178/2002 laying down the general principles and re-quirements of food law, establishment of the European Food Safety Authority and laying down procedures concerning food safety [1]. In April 2011, Slovenian food producers were surveyed. A study of the production of Slovenian food producers before (1999-2004) and after (2005-2010) EU accession was conducted in order to determine the state of food manufacturers in Slovenia. On the basis of producer data-base, producers were chosen, according to their engagement in the pro-duction of food before and after joining the EU.

Understanding the flow of raw materials and products may indicate the potential hazard of the supply of the population with safe food. Thus, it is necessary to have a detailed knowledge of the purchase of raw mate-rials, of the control of suppliers and of the opinion of Slovenian manu-facturers and importers of food. According to the political and financial flows, it was expected that many food manufacturers replaced the raw material suppliers since Slovenia joined the EU. Amended legislation also offers various options of the safety management of food chains which is raising doubt that the producers loosened these systems and that after Slovenia joined the EU, suppliers from the EU began to be checked at lower criteria and less often than suppliers from the third countries. The purpose of this work is to examine how such thinking and speculation holds true and how the food flows run along the food chain.

METHODS

The purchasing of raw materials, control of suppliers and the opinion of Slovenian manufacturers and importers of food, have been interested so the two six-year periods before and after joining the EU have been com-pared, namely from 1999 to 2010. Of 169 sent questionnaires, 76 re-sponses have been received, representing 45 % of all sent question-naires.

The hypothesis: “Many food producers, after Slovenia joined the EU, changed suppliers of raw materials” and “After the entry of Slovenia into the EU food producers examine their suppliers from the EU at lower criteria and less often than suppliers from third countries” have been tested.

For this purpose, a questionnaire that consists of several parts has been created. The application and purpose, a description of the composition of the questionnaire and instructions for completion are stated in the introductory part. The questionnaire itself is divided into four parts: A, B, C and D. Part A covers the production before joining the EU, part B covers the production after joining the EU and part C provides opinion and trust of the companies in raw materials and products from the EU. Parts A and B are divided into control of raw materials and control of

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suppliers. Part D is designed in a way so that companies can enter the data of customer complaints, withdrawal and recall of food by periods. Purchases of raw materials and control of suppliers before and after Slovenia joined the EU and opinion of the companies are formed on the basis of an agreement scale, which is the five-step interval Likert scale with 1 representing “I strongly disagree”, 2 “I mostly disagree”, 3 “l partly agree”, 4 “I mostly agree” and 5 representing “I totally agree”. Hypothesis were tested by comparing the means of responses, stand-ard deviations of individual statements, and by statistical processing of responses using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software. Firstly, the Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Shapiro-Wilk tests have been performed to determine whether normal distribution can be ad-justed to empirical data. The One-Sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov Test procedure compares the observed cumulative distribution function for a variable with a specified theoretical distribution, which may be normal, uniform, Poisson, or exponential. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov Z is com-puted from the largest difference (in absolute value) between the ob-served and theoretical cumulative distribution functions.

On the basis of the results of these one-sample non-parametric tests, the nonparametric Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test for two related samples has been chosen to test the hypotheses.

The sign test computes the differences between the two variables for all cases and classifies the differences as either positive, negative, or tied. If the two variables are similarly distributed, the number of positive and negative differences will not differ significantly. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test considers information about both the sign of the differences and the magnitude of the differences between pairs. The Wilcoxon signed-ranks method tests the null hypothesis that two related medians are the same and compare a single median against a known value or paired medians from the same (or matched) sample.

The mean is the central tendency of a collection of numbers taken as the sum of the numbers divided by the size of the collection.

Standard deviation shows how much variation or “dispersion” exists from the average (mean, or expected value). The low standard deviation indicates that the data points tend to be very close to the mean, where-as high standard deviation indicates that the data points are spread out over a large range of values.

RESULTS

Production before joining the EU

In this section the results of a survey of part A: Production before enter-ing the EU from 1999 to 2004 have been presented. All results are gained from our own research.

The Table 1 shows that the respondents on average partly or mostly agree with the statement that before Slovenia joined the EU the raw

Hypothesis were tested by

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materials of Slovenian origin were used, they partly agree that they used imported raw materials and also partly agree that they used materials of EU origin. They used raw materials of Slovenian origin, as well as raw materials of EU origin and imported raw materials from third countries. On average they mostly disagree that they used raw materials of Slove-nian origin, raw materials of EU origin and raw materials from third countries in the same proportion: on average, they mostly agree that they gave advantage to the Slovenian raw materials (Mean: 3.95±1.142), but they did not give priority to raw materials from EU. Manufacturers, on average, mostly self-produced foods (Mean: 4.66±0.684), only a few, in addition to their own production, also im-±0.684), only a few, in addition to their own production, also im-), only a few, in addition to their own production, also im-ported final foods (Mean: 2.20±1.479) [2].

Table 1.

Mean and standard deviation of answers on purchase of raw materials before entering the EU.

Number of

answers Mean Standard deviation

A1. We used raw material of Slovenian origin. 76 3.45 1.237

A2. We used imported raw material. 76 2.93 1.170

A3. We used raw material from EU members. 76 3.03 1.070

A4. We used materials that were of Slovenian origin, originating from EU countries and imported raw materials from other countries in about the same proportion.

76 2.74 1.170

A5. Priority was given to raw materials, which are of Slovenian origin

and to Slovenian suppliers. 76 3.95 1.142

A6. Priority was given to raw materials of EU origin and to EU suppliers. 76 2.39 1.072 A7. We have been producing final food products from raw materials. 76 4.66 0.684

A8. Final products were also imported. 76 2.20 1.479

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On average they partly most agree that suppliers were checked before the first delivery, but they have not been verified on the content of con-taminants. Also, on average, they partly agree that suppliers were regu-larly and periodically checked, but not reguregu-larly checked on the content of contaminants. On average, they mostly agree that all suppliers were checked under the same criteria and that Slovenian and EU suppliers were not checked under looser criteria. There is a small difference among the verification of Slovenian and EU suppliers. Slovenian suppli-ers had been checked less strictly (Mean: 2±1.244) than EU supplisuppli-ers (Mean: 1.67±1.025). Manufacturers, on average, mostly agree that they had very few consumers’ complaints, few non-compliant products and few withdrawals/recalls of food. They partially agree that very few foods were analysed (Table 2) [2].

Table 2.

Mean and standard deviation of answers on control of suppliers before entering the EU.

Number of

answers Mean Standard deviation

A9. We had set up the HACCP system. 76 3.49 1.194

A10. Suppliers were always verified before the first delivery. 76 3.58 1.146 A11. Before the first delivery, suppliers were always verified on the

content of environmental contaminants. 76 2.49 1.291

A12. Suppliers were regularly periodically checked. 76 3.28 1.162 A13. Suppliers were regularly periodically checked on the content of

environmental contaminants. 76 2.47 1.238

A14. All suppliers were examined under the same criteria. 76 3.82 1.241 A15. Slovenian suppliers were checked under “looser” criteria than

suppliers from imports, because they are “domestic”. 76 2.00 1.244 A16. EU suppliers were checked under “looser” criteria than other

suppliers from imports, because of European goods. 76 1.67 1.025

A17. We had very few customers’ complaints. 76 3.92 0.963

A18. We had very few non-compliant products. 76 4.16 0.713

A19. We had very few withdrawals/recalls of food. 76 4.58 0.497

A20. Very few final products were analysed. 76 3.16 1.386

Analysis of individual statements in the dimension of control of suppli-ers before entering the EU showed that respondents most dispsuppli-ersedly answered to the argument “Very few final products were analysed” with the standard deviation of 1.386, and least dispersedly to the argument “We had very few withdrawals/recalls of food” with standard deviation of 0.497. They also answered very dispersedly to the statements: “Be-fore the first delivery, suppliers were always verified on the content of environmental contaminants” (1.291), “Slovenian suppliers were checked under “looser” criteria than suppliers from imports, because they are domestic” (1.244), “All suppliers were examined under the same criteria” (1.241) and “Suppliers were regularly periodically checked on the content of environmental contaminants” (1.238). The replies concerning HACCP system to the statement “We had set up the HACCP system” with the standard deviation of 1.194, were also dis-persed. In addition to the argument: “We had very few withdrawals/re-calls of food” the answers to the statements “We had very few non-compliant products” (0.713) and “We had very few customers’

The replies concerning

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complaints” (0.963) were much more unified. It can be concluded that they had quite different approaches to the implementation of the HAC-CP system and control of their suppliers, but still they all had very few customer complaints, non-compliant products and very few withdraw-als and recalls of food (Table 2) [2].

Production after joining the EU

After joining the EU, the producers still mostly favour Slovenian raw materials (Mean: 3.87±1.124). Raw materials of Slovenian origin and EU origin are used in approximately equal proportions. According to the period before accession to the EU slightly more producers import final products (before joining the EU; Mean: 2.20±1.479, after joining the EU; Mean: 2.67±1.491) (Table 3). Analysis of individual statements on purchase of raw materials before entry into the EU showed that re-spondents most dispersedly answered to the statement, “We also im-port final products” with the standard deviation of 1.491, and least dis-persedly to the statement “We are producing final products from raw materials” with a standard deviation of 0.683 (Table 3) [2].

Table 3.

Mean and standard deviation of answers on purchase of raw materials after joining the EU.

Number of

answers Mean

Standard deviation

B1. We use raw materials that are of Slovenian origin. 76 3.42 0.942 B2. We use imported raw materials (from third countries). 76 2.32 1.122 B3. We use raw materials from other EU countries. 76 3.59 0.982 B4. We use raw materials that are of Slovenian origin, originating from

other EU countries and imported raw materials in approximately equal proportions.

76 2.55 1.012

B5. We give priority to raw materials, which are of Slovenian origin and

to Slovenian suppliers. 76 3.87 1.124

B6. We give priority to raw materials, which are originating from other

EU members and EU suppliers. 76 3.07 1.024

B7. We are producing final products from raw materials 76 4.50 0.683

B8. We also import final products. 76 2.67 1.491

B9. Slovenia’s entry into the EU has influenced our choice of supplier and raw materials. After joining the EU, we changed raw material supplier(s).

76 2.79 1.320

B10. After Slovenia joined the EU we selected supplier(s) within the EU. 76 2.89 1.281

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Com-monly, no more final products are being analyzed than before the entry into the EU (Table 4) [2].

Table 4.

Mean and standard deviation of answers on control of suppliers after joining the EU.

Number of

answers Mean Standard deviation

B11. A HACCP system is very efficient. 76 4.14 0.761

B12. Suppliers are always checked before the first delivery. 76 4.12 0.894 B13. Suppliers are always checked on the content of environmental

contaminants before the first delivery. 76 3.21 1.024

B14. Suppliers are regularly periodically checked. 76 3.88 0.909 B15. Suppliers are also regularly periodically checked on the content of

environmental contaminants. 76 3.11 1.066

B16. All suppliers are verified under the same criteria. 76 4.07 0.971 B17. Slovenian suppliers are checked under “looser” criteria than

suppliers from imports, due to “domestic” goods. 76 2.12 1.211 B18. EU suppliers are checked under “looser” criteria than suppliers

from imports, due to European goods. 76 2.07 1.170

B19. We have very few customers’ complaints. 76 4.11 0.723

B20. We have very few non-compliant products. 76 4.26 0.661

B21. We have very few withdrawals/recalls of food. 76 4.50 0.643

B22. Very few final products are analysed. 76 2.53 1.113

B23. Because of entry into the EU, suppliers are rarely periodically

checked. 76 1.95 0.815

B24. We have more customer complaints than before entering the EU. 76 2.50 1.361 B25. We have more non-compliant products than before joining the EU. 76 2.33 1.148 B26. We have more withdrawals/recalls of products than before entering

the EU. 76 2.11 1.150

B27. More final products are analysed than before joining the EU. 76 2.67 1.518

Analysis of the various arguments concerning the control of suppliers after joining the EU showed that respondents most dispersedly an-swered to the statement, “More final products are analyzed than before joining the EU” with a standard deviation of 1.518, and least dispers-edly to the “We have very few withdrawals/recalls of food” with a stand-ard deviation of 0.643. The following statements: “We have very few non-compliant products” (0.661), “We have very few customers’ com-plaints” (0.723), “A HACCP system is very efficient” (0.761), “Because of entry into the EU, suppliers are rarely periodically checked” (0.815), “Suppliers are always checked before the first delivery” (0.894) and “Suppliers are regularly periodically checked” (0.909) result in low standard deviation (Table 4) [2].

Opinion of the producers-confidence in the materials/products of the EU

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their raw materials and final products. However, on average, they partly agree that after accession to the EU purchases of raw materials and fi-nal products from the EU increased while imports of raw materials and final products from third countries decreased. Also, on average, they partly agree that the entry of Slovenia into the EU did not influence the choice of raw materials and suppliers (Table 5) [2].

On average, they mostly agree that when selecting raw materials, they take into account both, price and quality (Mean: 4.38), but majority, on average, does not trust raw materials from different EU Member States (Mean: 2.74) equally. On average they partly agree that the scope of the inspection in Slovenia can be reduced at the expense of providing a high level of food safety within the EU, while on average, they mostly agree that the inspection should focus more on raw materials or food of those producers and origins which have had inadequate samples more often. On average they mostly agree, that inspection should be tight-ened at the import into the EU (Table 5) [2].

Analysis of individual statements on the opinion of the food producers in Slovenia showed that respondents answered most dispersedly to the argument “After Slovenia joined the EU, purchases of final food products from the EU have increased” with the standard deviation of 1.421, while least dispersedly to “Inspections in Slovenia should focus more on raw materials/products from those countries that often have inadequate samples” with a standard deviation of 0.667. They also respond very dispersely to the following arguments: “Slovenia’s joining to the EU did not affect our choice of raw materials and suppliers” with a standard deviation 1.409, “After Slovenia joined the EU, purchases of raw materials from the EU have increased” with a standard deviation of 1.269, “After joining Slovenia to the EU, imports of final products from third countries have decreased” with a standard deviation of 1.233, and to the statement “After joining Slovenia to the EU, import of raw materials from third countries has decreased” with the standard deviation of 1.225. Less dispersion is found in the following statements: “When given the choice of raw materials, both the quality and the price are considered” with a standard deviation of 0.783, “Inspection at the external border, at the import into the EU, should be tightened” with the standard deviation 0.816, and in the statement “When selecting the preferred raw material, quality has priority regardless of the price” with a standard deviation of 0.883 (Table 5) [2].

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DISCUSSION

Replacement of raw material suppliers

According to the results of the survey, producers, after entering the EU, approached very differently to the replacement of the raw material sup-pliers. When the results of the responses about purchases of raw mate-rials before and after joining the EU, namely the mean values before and after joining the EU have been compared, the use of raw materials of Slovenian origin after joining the EU decreased by 0.87 % (Δ Mean is 0.03), use of materials from imports decreased by 21 % (Δ Mean is 0.61) while use of materials from the EU increased by 18 % (Δ Mean is 0.56). Priority in the selection of Slovenian producers after accession to the EU decreased by 2 % (Δ Mean is 0.08), but priority in the selection of suppliers from the EU and thereby on average also the raw materials from the EU, after joining the EU, increased by 28 % (Δ Mean is 0.68) (Table 6). Differences in responses to statements about raw materials before and after joining the EU are shown in Figure 1 [2].

Table 5.

Mean and standard deviation of answers on business confidence in EU commodities/products.

Number of

answers Mean

Standard deviation

C1. The safety of our products has increased by entering the EU. 76 2.38 1.107 C2. Joining the EU we use more quality raw materials. 76 2.43 0.929 C3. Easier access to raw materials of higher quality at the same price. 76 3.00 1.033 C4. Easier access to raw materials of higher quality at lower price. 76 2.86 1.092 C5. Because of entry into the EU we are more sure of the quality of raw

materials and thus in the final products. 76 2.53 1.101

C6. After Slovenia joined the EU, purchases of raw materials from the

EU have increased. 76 3.13 1.269

C7. After Slovenia joined the EU, purchases of final food products from

the EU have increased. 76 2.92 1.421

C8. After joining Slovenia to the EU, import of raw materials from third

countries has decreased. 76 2.79 1.225

C9. After joining Slovenia to the EU, import of final products from third

countries has decreased. 76 2.62 1.233

C10. Slovenia’s joining the EU did not affect our choice of raw materials

and suppliers. 76 3.04 1.409

C11. When selecting the preferred raw material, quality has priority

regardless of the price. 76 3.42 0.883

C12. When selecting the preferred raw material, price has priority

irrespective of quality. 76 2.17 0.900

C13. When given the choice of raw materials, both the quality and the

price are considered. 76 4.38 0.783

C14. When selecting raw materials we equally trust the manufacturers in

all EU Member States. 76 2.74 0.985

C15. The scope of inspection in Slovenia could decrease, since the level

of assurance of food safety within the EU is very high. 76 3.01 1.113 C16. Inspections in Slovenia should focus more on raw material/products

from those countries that often have inadequate samples. 76 4.36 0.667 C17. Inspection at the external border, at the import into the EU, should

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After joining the EU a slight decline in giving priority to Slovenian manu-facturers can be detected and significant increase of favouring the EU producers. On the basis of this it is assumed that Slovenian producers which favoured the Slovenian manufacturers partly began to give priori-ty to EU producers, while producers who gave preference to suppliers from the EU, mostly kept giving priority to EU suppliers and raw materi-als [2].

Table 3 shows that Slovenian producers, on average, partly agree with

the statement “Slovenia’s entry into the EU has influenced our choice of suppliers and raw materials. After joining the EU, we changed raw ma-terial supplier(s)” (Mean is 2.79). Responses to the argument are very dispersed with a standard deviation of 1.320. Also, on average, they partly agree that after Slovenia joined the EU they selected a supplier from the EU (Mean is 2.89). The statement “After Slovenia joined the EU we selected supplier(s) within the EU” was answered with a stand-ard deviation of 1.281 (Table 3). According to the results of the survey it may be concluded that the producers, after Slovenia joined the EU have reacted variously and so variously adapted the purchase of raw Table 6.

Mean and standard deviation of purchase of raw materials before and after joining the EU.

Mean before

Mean

after (divergence)∆ Mean

Standard deviation (before) Standard deviation (after)

Use of raw material of Slovenian origin. 3.45 3.42 0.03 1.237 0.942

Use of imported raw material. 2.93 2.32 0.61 1.17 1.122

Use of raw material from EU members. 3.03 3.59 0.56 1.07 0.982 We used materials that were of Slovenian origin,

originating from EU countries and imported raw materials from other countries in about the same proportion.

2.74 2.55 0.19 1.17 1.012

Priority to raw materials of Slovenian origin and to

Slovenian suppliers. 3.95 3.87 0.08 1.142 1.124

Priority to raw materials of EU origin and to EU suppliers. 2.39 3.07 0.68 1.072 1.024

-0.8 -0.6 -0.4 -0.20 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8

Use of raw material of Slovenian

origin.

Use of raw material from import.

Use of raw material from EU members. Use of materials different origin in about the same proportion.

Priority to raw materials Slovenian origin and Slovenian suppliers. Priority to raw materials EU origin and EU suppliers.

∆ Mean -0.03 -0.61 0.56 -0.19 -0.08 0.68 -0.03 -0.61 0.56 -0.19 -0.08 0.68 M ea n Figure 1.

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materials. Some have remained with previous suppliers of raw materi-als, others have changed suppliers [2].

When analyzing the responses of some opinions on the business confi-dence in the materials and products of EU origin (questions, part C), similar conclusions may be drawn. On average, they partly agree with the statement “After Slovenia joined the EU, purchases of raw materials from the EU have increased” (Mean is 3.13). From the responses it can be concluded that at least part of the producers increased purchases from the EU suppliers or switched their suppliers with suppliers from the EU. They answered quite dispersedly with a standard deviation of 1.269. On average, they partly agree with the statement “After Slovenia joined the EU, purchases of final food products from the EU have in-creased” (Mean is 2.92). From that it may be concluded that after the accession to the EU purchases of finished products from the EU have increased, but to a lesser extent than the purchase of raw materials originating in the EU. The standard deviation is 1.421, which means that manufacturers have responded very dispersedly. From that it may be concluded that operating of Slovenian producers varies greatly and can not be spoken about common characteristics of all manufacturers. On average they also partly agree (Mean is 3.04) with the statement “Slovenia’s accession to the EU did not affect our choice of raw materi-als and suppliers”. The results confirm our conclusion that some pro-ducers replaced their suppliers, but others did not and that there is no such thing as the common replacement of suppliers, which would be indicated in all Slovenian suppliers (Table 5) [2].

After joining the EU a slight 3 % decline in own food production is per-ceived (Δ Mean is 0.16) and a 21 % increase (Δ Mean is 0.47) of final product import (Tables 1 and 3) [2].

Testing of the hypothesis concerning changing of the suppliers Hypothesis “Many food producers, after Slovenia joined the EU changed suppliers of raw materials” has been tested using the SPSS programme. Firstly, Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and Shapiro-Wilk tests have been per-formed to verify whether a normal distribution can be attributed to the data from statements A1 to A6 and B1 to B6. Test results are shown in the Table 7. Test results show that the sig. < 0.05, indicating that a normal distribution cannot be attributed to values of the studied varia-bles (arguments A1 to A6 and B1 to B6), so the nonparametric test for two related samples has been chosen to test the above written hypoth-esis (Table 8). In Wilcoxon Signed Rank test the value is statistically significant at sig. <0.05, if its absolute standardized value z is greater than 1.96. On the basis of results it may be concluded that the data from statements can be attributed the statistically significant differenc-es between the compared periods 1999-2004 and 2005-2010 [4, 5].

On average, they partly agree

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Table 7.

Tests of normality for statements from A1 to A6 and B1 to B6.

Kolmogorov-Smirnov(a) Shapiro-Wilk

Statistic df Sig. Statistic df Sig.

A1. We used raw material of Slovenian origin. 0.212 76 0.000 0.891 76 0.000 B1. We use raw materials that are of Slovenian origin. 0.225 76 0.000 0.893 76 0.000 A2. We used imported raw material. 0.220 76 0.000 0.903 76 0.000 B2. We use imported raw materials (from third

countries). 0.216 76 0.000 0.867 76 0.000

A3. We used raw material from EU members. 0.280 76 0.000 0.869 76 0.000 B3. We use raw materials from other EU countries. 0.201 76 0.000 0.878 76 0.000 A4. We used materials that were of Slovenian origin,

originating from EU countries and imported raw materials from other countries in about the same proportion.

0.170 76 0.000 0.912 76 0.000

B4. We use raw materials that are of Slovenian origin, originating from other EU countries and imported raw materials in approximately equal proportions.

0.223 76 0.000 0.891 76 0.000

A5. Priority was given to raw materials, which are of

Slovenian origin and to Slovenian suppliers. 0.230 76 0.000 0.823 76 0.000 B5. We give priority to raw materials, which are of

Slovenian origin and to Slovenian suppliers. 0.244 76 0.000 0.842 76 0.000 A6. Priority was given to raw materials of EU origin and

to EU suppliers. 0.223 76 0.000 0.892 76 0.000

B6. We give priority to raw materials, which are

originating in other EU members and to EU suppliers. 0.211 76 0.000 0.888 76 0.000

a – Lilliefors Significance Correction df – degrees of freedom

Table 8.

Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test – Test Statistics(b) for statements from A1 to A6 and B1 to B6.

z*

Asymptotic Significance (2-tailed)

We use raw materials that are of Slovenian origin. – We used raw material of

Slovenian origin. -0.119(a) 0.905

We use imported raw materials (from third countries). – We used imported raw

materials. -4.458(a) 0.000

We use raw materials from other EU countries. – We used raw material from EU

members. -4.485(b) 0.000

We use raw materials that are of Slovenian origin, originating from other EU countries and imported raw materials in approximately equal proportions. – We used materials that were of Slovenian origin, originating from EU countries and imported raw materials from other countries in about the same proportion.

-1.414(a) 0.157

We give priority to raw materials, which are of Slovenian origin and Slovenian suppliers. – Priority was given to raw materials, which are of Slovenian origin and to Slovenian suppliers.

-0.634(a) 0.526

We give priority to raw materials, which are originating in other EU members and to

EU suppliers. – Priority was given to raw materials of EU origin and to EU suppliers. -3.993(b) 0.000

(14)

with sig.> 0.05, while for the use of raw materials of Slovenian origin, the use of raw materials of different origins in the same proportion, and for giving priority to Slovenian raw materials and Slovenian producers, absolute value of the variable z is less than 1.96 with sig.> 0.05 [2].

Control of suppliers

According to the results of the survey, after joining the EU more effec-tive control over the suppliers can be observed. The results of the re-sponses of control over the suppliers before and after joining the EU, namely the mean values before and after EU accession have been com-pared and it was found out that, the opinion of producers on the effec-tiveness of the HACCP system has increased by 19 % (Δ Mean is 0.65), checking of suppliers before the first delivery by 15 % (Δ Mean is 0.54) and verification of suppliers on content of contaminants prior to the first supply increased by 29 % (Δ Mean is 0.72). Periodical checks of suppliers have increased by 18 % (Δ Mean is 0.6) and periodical checks of suppliers on content of environmental contaminants increased by 26 % (Δ Mean is 0.64) (Table 9). Before joining the EU, producers answered quite dispersedly, but after joining the EU, the answers are much less dispersed. Reduction of the dispersion occurred due to the introduction and active implementation of the HACCP system. Figure 2 shows the differences in the answers to the arguments on control of suppliers before and after EU accession [2].

Table 9.

Mean and standard deviation for control of suppliers before and after entering the EU.

Mean (before)

Mean

(after) (divergence)∆ Mean

Standard deviation

(before)

Standard deviation

(after)

HACCP system. 3.49 4.14 0.65 1.194 0.761

Verifying of suppliers before the first delivery. 3.58 4.12 0.54 1.146 0.894 Verifying of suppliers before the first delivery on

the content of contaminants. 2.49 3.21 0.72 1.291 1.024

Periodical checking of suppliers. 3.28 3.88 0.60 1.162 0.909

Periodical checking of suppliers on the content

of contaminants. 2.47 3.11 0.64 1.238 1.066

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Before as well as after joining the EU, producers mostly agree that they monitor suppliers under the same criteria. The statement “All suppliers are verified under the same criteria” was on average evaluated with “mostly agree”, before (Mean is 3.82) and after EU entry (Mean is 4.07). Before joining the EU the standard deviation was 1.241 and af-ter joining the EU, 0.971, from which may be concluded that afaf-ter join-ing the EU producers are more unified in the evaluation of suppliers. Producers, on average, did not agree with the argument “Slovenian sup-pliers are checked under “looser” criteria than supsup-pliers from imports, due to “domestic” goods” and they before and after joining the EU, se-lected the statement “mostly disagree”. Even in the standard deviation there is no significant difference, from which it may be concluded that the entry of Slovenia into the EU did not influence the selection of Slov-enian producers under lower criteria. Also, on average, producers did not agree with the statement “EU suppliers are checked under “looser” criteria than suppliers from import, due to European goods”, since they before and after joining the EU, on average, evaluated the statement with “mostly disagree” (before entering the EU, Mean: 1.67, after join-ing the EU, Mean: 2.07). It is interestjoin-ing that the agreement with the statement after joining the EU rose by 24 % (Δ Mean is 0.4) and the standard deviation also slightly increased (Table 10) [2].

0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8

HACCP

system. suppliers before Verification of the first delivery.

Verification of suppliers before

the first delivery on the

content of contaminants.

Periodical checking of

suppliers.

Periodical checking of suppliers on the content of contaminants.

∆ Mean 0.65 0.54 0.72 0.6 0.64

M

ea

n

Figure 2.

Difference of mean values of answers for control of suppliers before and after entering the EU.

Table 10.

Mean and standard deviation for control of suppliers under “looser” criteria before and after entering the EU.

Mean

(before) (after)Mean (divergence)∆ Mean

Standard deviation

(before)

Standard deviation

(after)

(16)

Before joining the EU 62 % of respondents strongly disagree with the statement “EU suppliers are checked on “looser” criteria than suppliers from import, due to European goods”, while after joining the EU, only 43 % of producers strongly disagree with the statement. Before joining the EU 9 % of respondents answer “partly agree” and 16 % after join-ing the EU. Before joinjoin-ing the EU 8 % of respondents “mostly agree” with the statement and 13 % after joining the EU. On the basis of re-sponses we concluded that most producers evaluate all of their suppli-ers, regardless of origin, under the same criteria, but the percentage of those who evaluate EU suppliers on the “looser” criteria after joining the EU has increased.

Examining the argument “Because of entry into the EU, suppliers are rarely periodically checked”, it may be found out that most of the pro-ducers (53 %) chose the answer “mostly disagree” (Mean is 1.95), which is consistent with results of previous statements (Table 4). It is interesting that the standard deviation is low with 0.815. The answer “strongly disagree” was chosen by 29 % of respondents and answer “mostly disagree” by 53 % of respondents. Partly agree was chosen by 14 % of respondents, but only 4 % of respondents mostly or totally agree with the statement. From the results it may be concluded that entry into the EU did not affect the frequency of periodical checks of suppliers of Slovenian producers [2].

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Table 11.

Tests of normality for statements from A9 to A16 and B11 to B18.

Kolmogorov-Smirnov(a) Shapiro-Wilk

Statistic df Sig. Statistic df Sig.

We had set up the HACCP system. 0.198 76 0.000 0.886 76 0.000

A HACCP system is very efficient. 0.293 76 0.000 0.775 76 0.000 Suppliers were always verified before the first delivery. 0.206 76 0.000 0.879 76 0.000 Suppliers are always checked before the first delivery. 0.259 76 0.000 0.801 76 0.000 Before the first delivery, suppliers were always verified on

the content of environmental contaminants. 0.200 76 0.000 0.860 76 0.000 Suppliers are always checked on the content of

environmental contaminants before the first delivery. 0.239 76 0.000 0.901 76 0.000 Suppliers were regularly periodically checked. 0.173 76 0.000 0.908 76 0.000 Suppliers are regularly periodically checked. 0.262 76 0.000 0.844 76 0.000 Suppliers were regularly periodically checked on the

content of environmental contaminants. 0.254 76 0.000 0.865 76 0.000 Suppliers are also regularly periodically checked on the

content of environmental contaminants. 0.224 76 0.000 0.899 76 0.000 All suppliers were examined under the same criteria. 0.217 76 0.000 0.831 76 0.000 All suppliers are verified under the same criteria. 0.236 76 0.000 0.824 76 0.000 Slovenian suppliers were checked under “looser” criteria

than suppliers from import, due to “domestic” goods. 0.289 76 0.000 0.772 76 0.000 Slovenian suppliers are checked under “looser” criteria

than suppliers from import, due to “domestic” goods. 0.256 76 0.000 0.826 76 0.000 EU suppliers were checked under “looser” criteria than

other suppliers from import, because of European goods. 0.362 76 0.000 0.693 76 0.000 EU suppliers are checked under “looser” criteria than

suppliers from import, due to European goods. 0.253 76 0.000 0.819 76 0.000

a – Lilliefors Significance Correction; df – degrees of freedom

Table 12.

Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test – Test Statistics(b) for statements from A9 to A16 and B11 to B18.

z*

Asymptotic Significance (2-tailed)

A HACCP system is very efficient. – We had set up the HACCP system. -4.348(a) 0.000 Suppliers are always checked before the first delivery. – Suppliers were always verified

before the first delivery. -4.449(a) 0.000

Suppliers are always checked on the content of environmental contaminants before the first delivery. – Before the first delivery, suppliers were always verified on the content of environmental contaminants.

-4.948(a) 0.000

Suppliers are regularly periodically checked. – Suppliers were regularly periodically checked. -4.341(a) 0.000 Suppliers are also regularly periodically checked on the content of environmental

contaminants. – Suppliers were regularly periodically checked on the content of

environmental contaminants. -4.587(a) 0.000

All suppliers are verified under the same criteria. – All suppliers were examined under the

same criteria. -1.813(a) 0.070

Slovenian suppliers are checked under “looser” criteria than suppliers from import, due to “domestic” goods. – Slovenian suppliers were checked under “looser” criteria than suppliers

from import, due to “domestic” goods. -0.863(a) 0.388

EU suppliers are checked under “looser” criteria than suppliers from import, due to European goods. – EU suppliers were checked under “looser” criteria than other suppliers

from import, because of European goods. -3.170(a) 0.002

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The analysis results (Table 12) showed that the absolute value of the variable z for the use of the HACCP system, for the control of suppliers before the first delivery, control of suppliers on the contaminants before the first delivery, periodical checks of suppliers, periodical control of suppliers on the contaminants, and for control of EU suppliers under less restrictive conditions, is greater than 1.96 with sig. < 0.05, so dif-ferences of this mean values before and after EU accession are statisti-cally significant. For control of all suppliers under the same conditions and for the control of Slovenian suppliers under less restrictive condi-tions, the absolute value of the variable z is less than 1.96 with sig. > 0.05, so differences of this mean values before and after EU accession are not statistically significant.

Opinion of producers

Considering the responses of part C: Opinion of the producers’ confi-dence in the materials/products from the EU, the following has been established. Producers, on average, mostly disagree with the argument “The safety of our products has increased by entering the EU” (Mean is 2.38), on the basis of which it may be concluded that manufacturers think that due to the entry into the EU the safety of their products has not increased (Table 5). The standard deviation is 1.107, which means that they answered quite dispersedly. Only 4 % completely agree with the fact that the safety of their products by entering the EU has in-creased, 13 % mostly agree, 24 % of them partly agree and 59 % of the producers mostly or strongly disagree with that [2].

On average, producers also mostly disagree with an argument “Joining the EU we use more quality raw materials”, (Mean: 2.43). According to their opinion, because of entry into the EU, they do not use higher qual-ity materials than before entering the EU. The dispersion of responses is lesser and totals 0.929 (Table 5). Only 8 % of manufacturers totally agree and mostly agree with the statement. 46 % of the producers partly agree with the statement, and the remaining 46 % mostly or strongly disagree with the statement. From these responses, it may be concluded that, on average, most producers do not agree that they use more quality materials because of entry into the EU [2].

The statement “Because of entry into the EU we are more sure of the quality of raw materials and thus in the final products” was evaluated with partly agree by 33 % producers and with mostly or strongly disa-gree by 49 % producers, while 18 % producers assessed the statement with mostly or totally agree. Mean of the statement is 2.53 and stand-ard deviation 1.101 (Table 5). From the responses we can conclude that on average producers mostly disagree to partly agree with the statement and that because of entry into the EU itself they are not surer in quality of raw materials and final products [2].

Producers on average partly agree with the statement “After Slovenia joined the EU, purchases of raw materials from the EU have increased” (Mean 3.13). They answered quite dispersed with a standard deviation of 1.269 (Table 5). 48 % of producers evaluated the statement with “I

On average, producers also

(19)

totally agree” and “mostly agree”, 18 % of producers partly agree with the argument, and 34 % mostly or strongly disagree. From the respons-es we conclude that the opinion of manufacturers about purchase of raw materials originating from the EU after accession to the EU varies. Some, after accession to the EU, decided to purchase the raw materials of EU origin, while others stayed with their suppliers [2].

Producers also responded very dispersed to the statement “After Slove-nia joined the EU, purchases of final food products from the EU have increased”. Mean value is 2.92 and standard deviation 1.421 (Table 5). 45 % of manufacturers evaluated the statement with “I totally agree” and “mostly agree”, while 14 % of producers partly agree and 41 % of producers mostly or strongly disagree with the statement. We can con-clude that the producers, after joining the EU, decided very differently about the purchase of final food products originating from the EU. Some, after the EU entry, began with the purchase of final products from other producers in the EU, the rest still produced foods on their own or still purchased a part of them at the original producers [2]. Producers on average partly agree with the argument “Slovenia’s joining the EU did not affect our choice of raw materials and suppliers” (Mean: 3.04). They answered very dispersedly, with a standard deviation of 1.409 (Table 5). 42 % of producers answered “I totally agree” and “mostly agree”, 18 % of producers answered “partly agree”, and about the same number of the producers that agreed with the statement, dis-agreed with it. 40 % of producers decided for the answer “mostly disa-gree” and “strongly disadisa-gree”. On the basis of this data it may be seen that the opinions of Slovenian manufacturers are very different and that not all producers equally and uniformly proceed after EU entry [2]. Answers to the statement “When selecting raw materials we equally trust the manufacturers in all EU Member States” are very interesting. It is evident that Slovenian producers do not equally trust all producers of different EU member states, despite the fact that within the EU the same rules are applied. The mean of these answers is 2.74 with stand-ard deviation of 0.985 (Table 5). 20 % of producers answered “I totally agree” and “mostly agree”, 41 % of manufacturers answered “partly agree” while the answers “mostly disagree” and “strongly disagree” were chosen by 39 % of the producers [2].

CONCLUSION

On the basis of the results of comparing the producers’ responses and mean values, it can be concluded that after Slovenia joined the EU there has been an increased purchase of raw materials from other EU countries, as well as increased preference of suppliers from the EU and thereby also of the raw materials from the EU.

On the basis of the results of the nonparametric test for two related samples (Chapter “Testing of the hypothesis regarding the control of suppliers”) it can be concluded that the differences between the mean values in the compared periods 1999-2004 and 2005-2010 are not

(20)

statistically significant for the use of raw materials of Slovenian origin, for the use of materials of different origins in the same proportion, and for giving priority to Slovenian raw materials and Slovenian producers. However, the differences between the mean values in the compared periods 1999-2004 and 2005-2010 are statistically significant for ar-guments on the use of raw materials from third countries, on the use of raw materials originating from the EU and for arguments of giving prior-ity to raw materials from the EU. The hypothesis for changing the sup-pliers based on processing with SPSS software is therefore partially confirmed.

Processing of survey responses and the mean values regarding the con-trol of suppliers showed that Slovenian producers, after joining the EU, control their suppliers better than before entering the EU. The control of the suppliers before the first purchase has improved, as well as periodi-cal control. The control of the suppliers on the content of contaminants has also improved. The credit for this shift may be attributed to effec-tive performance of HACCP system. On the basis of responses it may be concluded that the majority of Slovenian producers all of their sup-pliers, regardless of origin, verifies under the same conditions. But the finding can not be ignored, that after joining the EU, the number of re-plies to the statement, that EU suppliers are evaluated under “looser” criteria than suppliers from import, because of European goods, has in-creased.

On the basis of the results of the nonparametric test for two related samples (Chapter “Testing of the hypothesis regarding the control of suppliers”) it can be concluded that the differences between the mean values in the compared periods 1999-2004 and 2005-2010 regarding the control of all suppliers under the same conditions and the control of Slovenian suppliers under less strict conditions, are not statistically sig-nificant. However, the differences between the means of the compared periods 1999-2004 and 2005-2010 regarding the use of the HACCP system, control of suppliers before the first delivery, control of suppliers on the contaminants before the first delivery, periodical control of sup-pliers, periodical control of suppliers on contaminants and control of EU suppliers under less strict conditions, are statistically significant. The hypothesis concerning the control of suppliers can therefore be partially confirmed.

After joining the EU, the use of raw material of Slovenian origin slightly decreased and the use of raw materials from other EU countries in-creased. After joining the EU, the use of raw materials from import de-creased. The analysis of the responses from the survey shows that mostly domestic suppliers and raw materials are trusted by the Sloveni-an mSloveni-anufacturers. It cSloveni-an be concluded that the imports decreased at the expense of a more simple procedure of the free movement of goods, which is less demanding than the procedure of import. Suppliers within the EU are also familiar with the requirements of the HACCP system and must transparently ensure the quality of their raw materials.

After joining the EU, the use

of raw material of Slovenian

origin slightly decreased and

the use of raw materials from

other EU countries increased.

(21)

After Slovenia’s accession to the EU, the control over suppliers from other EU countries has increased. This is very important for ensuring food safety and competitiveness in the EU market. After Slovenia’s accession to the EU, the percentage of those Slovenian producers who control Slovenian supplier under looser criteria has slightly increased, which indicates the confidence in Slovenian suppliers. It is interesting, that the percentage of those Slovenian producers who control EU sup-pliers under looser criteria has significantly increased. This suggests that suppliers in the EU are trusted by Slovenian producers and that this trust is based on EU requirements for the implementation of HACCP system. This confidence could be turned to great disadvantage in case of unsuitable raw materials.

The survey results also show partial distrust of free movement of goods. Interestingly, the HACCP system is in force in all EU Member States, but producers on average partly agree that they equally trust the manu-facturers in all EU States.

Very dispersed responses suggest that the opinions and practices are different, they probably vary even within a single reporting period. It is also likely that the price of raw materials has more influence. Recent research has indicated some interesting findings that indicate the exist-ing deficiencies in the provision of safe food. In order to obtain more detailed information on the status of the Slovenian food industry inter-views with the interviewer will continue to be carried out. The question-naire will also be defined in detail within each period, because a change of practice may occur within the six year period. It will also be interest-ing to obtain data on those EU Member States which the Slovenian producers trust and have confidence in as well as their reasons why they do so. The detailed questionnaire including the six year period would elucidate to what extent Slovenian producers trust the EU Mem-ber States.

REFERENCES

[1] Regulation (EC) No. 178/2002 laying down the general principles and requirements of food law, establishing the European Food Safety Author-ity and laying down procedures in matters of food safety. L31- 32002R0178/02: 1-24.

[2] Results of the survey, 2011.

[3] Raspor P. Priročnik za postavljanje in vodenje sistema HACCP. Slovenski institut za kakovost in meroslovje. Biotehniška fakulteta, Oddelek za živilstvo. Ljubljana, 2002: 598.

[4] Bastič M. Metode raziskovanja. Univerza v Mariboru. Ekonomsko poslovna fakulteta Maribor. 2006: 51.

[5] Koprivnik S., Kogovšek T., Gnidovec M. Analize podatkov z SPSS-om 12.0. Fakulteta za družbene vede Ljubljana. 2006: 142.

Interestingly, the HACCP

system is in force in all EU

Member States, but

Figure

Table 1.  Mean and standard deviation of answers on purchase of raw materials before entering the EU.
Table 2.  Mean and standard deviation of answers on control of suppliers before entering the EU.
Table 3.  Mean and standard deviation of answers on purchase of raw materials after joining the EU.
Table 4.
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References

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